In this February 2008 file photo, Stater Bros. Chairman and CEO Jack H. Brown waves to the crowd after he accompanied the first delivery to the new Stater Bros. Corporate Offices Norton Distribution Center at the former air force base as employees and invited guests participated in the first delivery to the new facility in San Bernardino.

RIVERSIDE >> The 14th annual Spirit of the Entrepreneur Awards took on a somber tone when the 860 in attendance Tuesday paused for a moment of silence for Stater Bros. executive chairman Jack Brown, who died Sunday at age 78.

The ceremony honors Inland area businesses that have shown innovation and leadership. It was hosted by Mike Stull, the founder of the award and director of the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship at Cal State San Bernardino.

He reminded the audience that Cal State San Bernardino recently changed one of its school’s name to the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration.

Stull said Brown gave the school “a $10 million-plus gift. … Anybody who knew Jack knew what a wonderful, kind-hearted person he was.”

Maria Thompson, the founder and CEO of Agile Sourcing Partners of Corona, was named “Best of the Best.” Entrepreneurs from Chino and Fontana were also lauded in nine categories besides the top honor.

Thompson also won in the distribution, logistics and transportation entrepreneur division. Agile Sourcing Partners provides customers such as Siemens, Sempra Energy and Pacific Gas & Electric with procurement, warehousing, assembly and logistics as well as other services.

Founded by Thompson in 2006, the company has six locations nationally.

Thompson had left the ceremony for a business trip by the time to the final award was announced, but said when she received the earlier award hat the evening was a moment for the area’s entrepreneurs to consider their efforts.

“Tonight is a chance for us to step back and be validated,” she said.

The winners ranged from a physician operating a medical center to a family-owned farm to a robotics development firm to a janitorial service, Chiro of Bloomington.

“Being in the janitorial industry, you don’t get a lot of opportunity to get recognition like this,” Timothy J. Russell of Chiro told the audience that came dressed to impress and dined on steak and scallops.